So Very Close
by franziska-von-llama
Summary: When Dahlia Hawthorne agrees to talk to Diego at the courthouse cafeteria, Mia can't shake the feeling that something is wrong. (My first Ace Attorney fanfiction! Please tell me if you like it :D)


Diego had been in an excellent mood all day; that morning he had been whistling as he strode into the Grossberg and Co Law Offices building, already carrying his trademark mug of steaming black coffee. Mia had raised an eyebrow as he passed her desk; he had merely winked at her and smiled as he continued on the way to his own office, raising a hand to greet Robert Hammond before closing the door behind him.

Diego's cheer was infectious - annoyingly so - Mia couldn't help but smile as she heard him brightly discussing an upcoming murder case with Mr. Grossberg. As tempting as it was to go and talk to him, Mia forced herself to stay put until their lunch break. If Grossberg decided that their 'office romance' was causing distractions from their work, there was going to be trouble.

"So," Mia said once lunchtime had finally come around, and the two of them had sat down at their usual cafeteria table. "Why are you so cheerful today?"

Looking up from his seventh cup of coffee that day, Diego grinned.

"Because, kitten, this morning I received an email from the devil herself."

Mia set down her green tea and narrowed her eyes.

"You don't mean..."

"Dahlia Hawthorne." Diego leaned back in his seat with a triumphant smile. "She finally responded to my email. She's agreed to talk over lunch next week."

"She...she really did that? Why?"

"Guilt?" he suggested. "Who knows, kitten. The important thing is that I think I can get her to confess."

Mia stirred her tea thoughtfully. The two of them had been researching Ms. Hawthorne for months, and it was only recently that they had discovered that she had been involved in several cases before the Terry Fawles trial - and under more than one fake name, too. Melissa Foster, Natalia Rimms, Evelyn Gordon...this was _huge_. This could be the biggest trial of the _year_, Diego had told her. All they needed to do was gather a little more evidence - getting her to confess would be almost too good to be true.

Which was why Mia wasn't buying it.

"It does seem pretty strange, though, doesn't it? I mean...why would she just decide to talk to you? Is it going to be more lies? A confession? Is she going to try and charm you into changing your mind?"

Diego shook his head, still smiling.

"You don't need to worry, kitten. There's no way she's charming -"

"_Diego_, we know that she's dangerous!" Mia bit her lip, trying to stay calm. "I don't think this is a good idea."

The smile faded. Reaching across the table, he put his hand over hers.

"We're going to be in the middle of the District Court cafeteria," he said reassuringly. "There's no way she can pull anything off in front of that many witnesses. It'll be alright, okay? You don't need to worry."

Mia looked down at his hand on hers. She could just make out the thin, pale scars from when he had shattered his coffee cup during her first trial.

"Yeah," she said finally. "Okay."

"We're finally going to get the chance to send the demon back to hell - we're going to get to avenge everyone she's ever hurt."

"If..." Looking up at her boyfriend, Mia swallowed. "_When_ she's been given the guilty verdict...I think I want to try defending people again. It's been seven months. Once Mr. Fawles has been avenged, like you said...I'll try again."

Diego's smile returned, and it seemed to Mia ten times sweeter than before.

"That's _exactly _what I like to hear, kitten. The courtroom needs someone like you. Someone with claws sharp enough to fight with until the very end. You can do it, I know." Suddenly glancing down to check his watch, he stood up, gathering his coat and bag. He smiled down at the attorney. "So no worrying, alright, Mia? It'll be over in a couple of hours, if not less."

"Okay," Mia said, standing up and flashing him a smile bright enough to rival his. And how could she not agree that everything would be alright? It was _Diego_, after all - clever and strong and never intimidated by anyone. Besides, she could never argue with him when he looked at her like that...

It wasn't until the day of the interview that Mia thought of the obvious, and by the

n Diego had already picked up his briefcase, given Mia a quick kiss on the cheek, and left for the District Court cafeteria. And that had only been fifteen minutes ago... she whipped out her phone and texted Diego.

**I don't suppose I could come to the interview too, Diego? Also, you left your thermos behind - Mia**

There was a long silence, which got Mia worried enough, but finally her phone pinged, and she quickly checked the new message.

**Not a bad idea, kitten. You're welcome to come over here if you like. The she-devil has already arrived though, so you'll have to be quick. As for the thermos, I'm buying coffee at the cafeteria. - Diego**

Mia stood up and grabbed her coat, then half-ran to the door.

"Where are you off to, my dear?" called a slightly irritated-sounding Mr. Grossberg.

"I'm going to help Di - Mr. Armando - with questioning a witness," Mia said as she signed herself out of the office, texting Diego back while walking out into the street and trying to hail a cab.

**I'm on my way now. - Mia**

Mia was not sure at all if she liked where this was going. Apart from anything, Diego hated the District Court cafeteria coffee. Whenever he had a trial Mia would go down the road to the nearby cafe to get him coffee instead.

The cab ride seemed to take forever; with every passing second Mia became more sure that something was wrong. And it wasn't like Diego to be naive - he knew very well that hunting down the truth could be a dangerous job. He knew that Dahlia was dangerous. He was just doing his job.

Mia practically threw the money at the cab driver ("Keep the change!") and, almost forgetting her purse, ran up the marble steps to the District Court building. She couldn't decide what she was feeling more of - hatred for Dahlia? Excitement for finally being closer to putting her behind bars? Fear for her and Diego's safety? After all...they had already found out that Dahlia was willing to do anything to keep her secrets safe.

The question continued to ring in her mind as she walked through the metal detector, practically bouncing up and down in impatience as her purse was scanned. Why does she want to be questioned? Why would she agree to be questioned?

She'll do anything to keep her secrets safe.

But...no...sh-she wouldn't!

Mia, you know she would.

The District Court cafeteria was on the first floor, two doors down; Mia pushed the heavy door open and looked around for the senior defence lawyer and Ms. Hawthorne. She spotted them almost instantly; there, by the window. Diego was slightly leaned forward in his seat, speaking quickly and seriously to that girl. Dahlia, the devil, the one who had quite literally gotten away with murder, was sitting opposite Diego. She was wearing that floaty white dress again, and her parasol was resting against the table. But what make Mia feel sick was that look in her eyes - that look that she had only just caught a glimpse of in Terry Fawles's trial. It was the true Dahlia - her spite, her focus, her pure evil.

And, under the table, she was turning something over and over in her hand.

It was too small for Mia to see from across the cafeteria; approaching their table, it slowly came into focus.

It was a heart-shaped necklace; a delicate and pretty thing. But Mia knew very well that it served a second purpose. She had seen it that day, at the trial -

- Dahlia was trying to silence him.

"Diego," Mia called, starting to panic as she realised that the bottle in Dahlia's lap was most definitely empty. It must have been her idea to order coffee from the cafeteria - so it would be easier to...

Diego looked up, finally seeing Mia.

"Hello, kitten," he said, his grim expression fading. "Kind of you to join us."

"Diego," Mia said weakly, "you didn't...you didn't drink that, did you?"

"I...no...we just ordered them now. I wanted to wait for you, but -"

Mia leaned forward and examined the mug of coffee, despite Diego's frown of confusion. Then she turned to Dahlia, struggling to remain calm.

"You poisoned it, didn't you?" she said fiercely.

Any trace of Dahlia's artificial smile were now gone. Diego looked down at the pale sheen on the surface of his coffee, then back up at the young girl.

"Poisoned," he repeated, comprehesion finally dawning. "You little b-"

"I'm quite sure I don't know what you're talking about," Dahlia cut in sweetly, standing up and tucking the necklace into her dress pocket. "And I don't appreciate being talked to in this manner." With a little sob, she turned and began to stride through the cafeteria.

She was almost half-way across the room before Mia and Diego had time to react.

"She could have -"

"But she didn't."

"But it was so close -"

Mia Fey and Diego Armando had been questioned by police for the past three hours; in between being interrogated and asked to fill out forms, Diego had been doing his best to comfort Mia, but to little effect. Telling her that it was finally all over was, in hindsight, a bad idea (he had forgotten about the day he had told her that that was the only time she should cry).

Ms Hawthorne herself was in the detention centre, from what the couple had gathered, and was currently being questioned by police as well. It was, in short, a miracle; she would have gotten away that day, if it hadn't been for a young man who had been standing in the wrong place in the wrong time. The spiky-haired teen had walked straight into the escaping Dahlia, who had then been knocked over and was caught by the persuing security guards - and Mia and Diego, who were close behind. The awkward boy had been taken in to be questioned briefly as well - his name was Phoenix Wright, an art student.

"She was awfully pretty," he said to the two of them thoughtfully as they waited. "I would never have guessed that she was the type of person to try and...poison someone..."

"That's the whole point of Dahlia Hawthorne...she's awfully pretty but pretty awful," Diego said somewhat cryptically, tapping his foot impatiently. Nobody had been to offer them tea or coffee, and the attorney was now suffering from what appeared to be caffeine withdrawal.

Mia, in between wiping her eyes with the cheap, 2-ply tissues the police had provided, talked to Phoenix about his art studies. It was rather surprising to learn that the pink-sweatered student had a keen interest in becoming an attorney instead. Diego gave him one of Marvin Grossberg's business cards before he left - although, he added to Mia later, if Mr. Grossberg hired Mr. Wright the pink sweater would probably have to go.

It had just been so close, Mia thought, leaning against Diego as they waited for the police officer to finally discharge them so they could go.

"I can't believe," she said finally, "that I almost lost you."

Diego was silent for a moment.

"Kitten, if it weren't for you, she would have have silenced me that bloody easily." He half-laughed. "It's a good thing I have you around, then, isn't it?"

"But she's gone now."

"There's still the trial," Diego pointed out, and Mia flinched. "But there's no way anyone defending her could win," he added quickly. "And it's because of you that we've finally caught her in the act."

"And here I am, sniffling away like a toddler," Mia said drily, sitting up a little straighter and straighening her skirt.

"Mia...you're the bravest person I know. And the best attorney. You fought the battle against that devil until the bitter end without ever wavering. Crying doesn't make it any less of a victory. It doesn't make you any weaker."

"I love you," Mia said suddenly. And she meant it. Everything Diego had said just then had felt so genuine - and it always did. Diego was honest and so incredibly wise...when he said things like that to make her feel better, they weren't empty words. And she had been that close to losing him forever...

The silence wasn't as long this time. Diego pulled her a little closer and kissed her on the top of her head.

"I love you too, kitten," he said quietly. "And don't you forget it."


End file.
